Blog

Year: 2015

It’s important in any workplace for all staff and executives to understand who in the organisation has the authority to make which decisions. Currency traders have to know what risk limits apply to their trading activities. Employees needing to travel for work need to know whether they can book the travel or if it needs to be approved, while frontline employees need to know if they can offer discounts to customers in particular circumstances. And senior managers looking to engage a service provider need to know if they have the power to do so.

Day Two of Governance Institute’s 32nd National Conference continued its focus on Australia’s evolving governance and risk landscape, opening with a welcome from Governance Institute’s new CEO Steven Burrell.

I recall very clearly the advice of a highly respected ASX100 company director and former mentor who said, ‘Trisha, it’s really quite simple. If you are not comfortable with what you are doing making front-page headlines in the Sydney Morning Herald, then you shouldn’t really be doing it.’

The value of a wide network of peers, mentors and professional acquaintances is crucial on many levels. It can help you tap into industry knowledge, find your dream job, provide a source of referrals or build a business.

For the last decade, the focus of governance has been on the board, on embedding good practices and behaviour at board level so that directors can provide more effective oversight of management and accountability to stakeholders.